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Flare: A Cryptid Desires Novella

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When Elara sets out to capture proof of a local cryptid, she’s prepared for anything—except the creature himself. Mothman is more than just a legend, and he has no intention of letting Elara go.

Flare is a romance between a cryptid and a human. Please read the trigger warnings before proceeding

RELEASE DATE IS JUST A PLACEHOLDER


144 pages, Kindle Edition

Published December 10, 2024

53 people are currently reading
347 people want to read

About the author

K.T. Maddan

14 books244 followers
Katie has always possessed a talent for crafting captivating stories. She loves crafting characters with profound depth and is passionate about narrating their stories. When she's not busy creating your next literary delight, she enjoys indulging in PC gaming sessions with her partner or showering affection on her beloved fur babies.

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5 stars
91 (25%)
4 stars
122 (34%)
3 stars
79 (22%)
2 stars
41 (11%)
1 star
22 (6%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 125 reviews
Profile Image for Dakota.
120 reviews11 followers
July 24, 2025
Why is mothman just ….a dude? And wearing JEANS?
Profile Image for Amber McAusland.
73 reviews
December 31, 2024
Too human not mothman enough.
Thinking about it more it's the worst book I've read this year.
Profile Image for Erin.
185 reviews18 followers
December 15, 2024
Uhm. This was everything I didn’t know I needed 🤣

I was in a slump and KT helped me get out of it with Mothman himself. It’s hot. It’s short. It’s wild. Go download and read it asap!
Profile Image for Tara Palmer.
58 reviews2 followers
August 11, 2025
If you're looking for a short read with all the spice, this is it.

I don't even know how to review this other than holy spice & Mothman 🤭😮‍💨
Profile Image for Lau.
255 reviews2 followers
June 17, 2025
oh boy I was expecting something way spicier...
also why, WHY does he wear jeans??
Profile Image for maddie.
146 reviews20 followers
September 18, 2025
⭐️

Okay…I have thoughts. And none of them are good. Flare just was not it for me. Honestly, if I had started the series here, I would’ve noped out so fast and never touched the next book. And that makes me sad, because the next one actually pulled me in. But this one? Hard pass.

First off, I don’t think this book was written for someone like me. I tried—I really, really tried—to get into the world and read it from the perspective of someone who loves this kind of romance. But oh my god…a moth man. A literal moth having a relationship with a woman. I couldn’t do it. My brain would not stop screaming, “This is a bug.”

And okay, fine, I told myself: suspend disbelief, go with it, maybe it’ll work. But then—AND I AM NOT MAKING THIS UP—pretty sure the book says he’s wearing jeans. JEANS. So now we’re talking about a half-man, half-moth, denim-wearing bug boyfriend. Every time the romance tried to be swoony, I was just picturing a giant moth trying to seduce someone while rocking Levi’s. How was I supposed to vibe with that??

And then there’s the IUD part. Ohhhh my god. That scene was just…no. I felt like I felt the whole thing happening. My stomach churned, my brain shut down, and I had to remind myself I was reading a book and not…living it. It crossed that line for me from “awkward/funny” into full-blown why is this in my brain?? territory.

The whole thing just completely took me out of the story. I get that monster romance is a niche, and I respect people who love it, but the extremely human characteristics mixed with the insect imagery and that IUD scene made it feel way too uncanny valley. Instead of being intrigued or swept up in the tension, I was just…uncomfortable.

I wanted to root for this, but nope. This wasn’t dark and alluring; it was awkward, disturbing, and, honestly, kind of gross. Definitely not my brand of romance, and definitely not a book I’ll be revisiting.

If this had been my entry point to the series, I would’ve DNF’d the whole thing right then and there.
Profile Image for s.shadereads .
426 reviews78 followers
January 28, 2025
"Whether it is a guardian, a harbinger, or something far darker, one thing is certain—Mothman endures. Its presence, fleeting and unexplained, reminds all who encounter it that there are still forces in the world beyond our understanding, forces that cannot be tamed or ignored."

This was entertaining. It's not what I expected going into a Cryptid erotic horror but still entertaining. It was pure Mothman smut with twisty hypnotic vibes.

But now I just have one question... Why is Mothman wearing pants? Okay, two questions... where does he even get said pants?! 😂

Malcolm the Mothman was very human-esque in his pants. (I'll never live the pants down, okay!) 😂 He was a sexy man with red eyes, wings, and hypnotic jizz! And, pants! I was kind of hoping for a true monster-esque character but sexy Mothman for the win, I guess!

It was also light as far as erotic horror goes. So, if you wanted to dip your toes into something a little darker, this one's a good start. Still make sure to check those triggers because it is an erotic horror with some pretty dark triggers. (The removal of the IUD was pretty wild, and the FMC had very little say in what happened to her and was highly confused about the power Malcolm held over her.) Again, the hypnotic jizz.
Profile Image for ablondieslibrary (Keirstyn’s Version).
222 reviews20 followers
December 15, 2024
This was a hot & spicy, highly entertaining, quick little novella about the supernatural ledgend, Mothman, and it had me hooked from the very beginning! When Elara travels to a remote cabin in the woods of West Virginia with her ex-boyfriend Ryder to summon Mothman for their vlog, they both end up with more than they bargained for.

This fast paced haunting journey has Elara questioning who she thought she was and struggling to reconcile that with the awakening of her deepest and darkest desires when she comes face to face with the ultimate legend himself, Mothman.

Do yourself a favor, and jump into this, you won’t regret it!
Profile Image for Dani.
706 reviews20 followers
December 18, 2024
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

This is my first read by this author and I’ve gotta say, I’m pretty dang hooked. Mothman is forever my weakness and the spice was oh so good. This was a quick, dark read that was filled with tons of fucked up spice. I was here for it! I just wish that Mothman was physically portrayed as a bit more “other” and less humanoid. But hey- it was by no means a dealbreaker.

I was so excited for this one that I detoured from my “holiday” reading and I don’t regret it a bit!
Profile Image for Megan Moser.
607 reviews
June 21, 2025
4.5🌟

I really liked this! I especially liked the prologue that led us up to the story. It has the perfect spooky vibe with lots of spice all wrapped up in about 90 pages. My only wish was that it was longer!

I love monster and paranormal books and this was exactly what I was in the mood for. It’s fast paced, great story line, and the perfect amount of smut. I’m excited to read the next two novellas in this series!
268 reviews4 followers
December 9, 2024
This was a very quick read and I absolutely loved it from the beginning! I absolutely loved the lore and story behind Mothman in the beginning, he is one of my favorite and most intriguing cryptids. The right amount of smut and cryptid. Keep going with these K.T.!
Profile Image for Darkbookghoul.
528 reviews7 followers
January 1, 2025
Flare: a Cryptid Desires novella by K.T Madden is a spicy, short story about Elara and her boyfriend Ryder. They have a social media channel hunting “monsters” they go in search of the Mothman and this is what happens when they find him. This is a sexy little human/cryptid romance and I enjoyed it more than I expected.
Profile Image for SpankMeSmutty.
280 reviews28 followers
August 11, 2025
Holy Malcolm 🥵 delicious smutty goodness! this is for the people that are ok with smut being the plot. I am one of those people so I loved it 😅
Profile Image for nicole.
107 reviews1 follower
March 18, 2025
Okay that was different. Short and Spicy and I enjoyed that way more than I should have. I clearly need to broaden my horizons because I have been missing out lol
Profile Image for Brittany Espinoza.
20 reviews1 follower
August 30, 2025
It was an honor to be apart of the ARC reviews for Flare. This book was 👀🔥🥵 I would definitely recommend this book (I even bought some for my closest friends). To be apart of Malcom x Elara journey was a wild ride. I also ordered the limited edition box and was blown away by the attention to details the author put into making the limited edition boxes.
Profile Image for Onyx Reads Smut.
330 reviews23 followers
November 28, 2024
I was messaging KT before I even hit the half way point telling her how much I was enjoying this. Who knew Mothman could be so erotic?👀
It is extremely different from what she normally writes, and like I said about Dana, I love watching writers step out of their comfort zones and write different genres. Its really different than what I normally read, but I've been trying to step outside of my, just strict dark romance, no fantasy or paranormal, I've only read a few demon romances that I love and I'm loving this one. I'm loving the suspense she gives us in the beginning, to just the straight spice when Mothman shows up because he knows he has to have her, the chase into more suspense. Its all so perfect!
If you weren't worshipping him now, girl you will be after this. I can't wait to see what you do for the rest of the cryptid series KT!❤️‍🔥
Profile Image for Vee (Nessie) Carsten.
134 reviews
December 18, 2024
I wanted to love this book going into it. I was fully expecting a nice cryptic/monster story but was, unfortunately, disappointed when Mothman decides to show up and is wearing jeans…. And has the facial structure of a human….. and has designs that look like tattoos. I was wanting and expecting (based on the book description) an actual Mothman. It is very well just the monsterf*cker part of me that wanted this creature to be just that; a creature. If you prefer tattooed guys with wings and antennae, this is the one for you.
Profile Image for Madison Reeves.
71 reviews1 follower
December 12, 2024
I just want to put out there that before I read Flare, I had no previous knowledge of what cryptids or the mothman were, so obviously, I was going in blind.

Now that we have established, I'm no expert on cryptids or mothman, we can begin my review.

In the beginning of the novella, I had no clue where this was going because it was just Elara and her boyfriend going in the middle of nowhere to go cryptid hunting for their podcast. I was like, alright, a little Ghostbusters like action, I can get behind that. Little did I know that soon, the mothman would strike his first victim within the first couple of pages. 😂

Then I was like, dang, okay, I like getting straight to the point. Please continue. Ms. Maddan done pulled me in, and there was no turning back. Shoot, if I was reading and the mothman told me I was next, I would say yes, sir, and comply. 😂😂

*cough* *cough* My name could totally be used as the MFC in one of your cryptid novellas. 👌😏

Anyways, if you want to know more about this crazy ride of a novella, you will have to give it a read!!! It captures you like a moth to light!
Profile Image for Courtney.
265 reviews18 followers
June 9, 2025
⭐️: 5/5

🖤 Cryptid x Human
🖤 Paranormal Investigation Gone Wrong
🖤 Unwilling Attraction
🖤 Mind Reader
🖤 Hypnotic Loads
🖤 Primal Play
🖤 He Unalives Her BF
🖤 Br33ding
🖤 He Pulls What Out of Her? (BC tampering)
🖤 Dubcxn
🖤 Let’s Play in the Forest
🖤 Soaking

I absolutely devoured this! I am obsessed with our beautiful mothman Malcom. This was my first toe dip into the monster/cryptid romance world and I am ready and here to more. I got an obsession humanoid with primal and Br33ding k!nk you can’t go wrong. The spice on point and it also the end hit me right in the feels! A must read in my opinion!
Profile Image for Lillian Grey.
Author 2 books8 followers
November 29, 2025
Fable Rating: 2.5/5 ⭐
Genre: Erotic horror
Tropes: Cryptid, soaking, breeding, touch her and die, mind control
Format: ebook
Pages: 90
Spice: 3 🌶️
S/S:
Check trigger warnings for any book

This book was another weird one I’ve read in my reading journey so far. I’m glad it’s over. It was still a little hot and spicy. If it was rl, I wouldn’t want a mind controlling alien thing to brain wash me and plant many babies in me. I didn’t like how Mothman killed her human friend (I can’t remember his name) at the beginning. That was kinda brutal.

Lillian - @lillianbookreviews on instagram
Profile Image for Millie.
232 reviews37 followers
December 27, 2024
you’re gonna look at me and tell me mothman’s government name is malcolm?????
Profile Image for Booksta.
531 reviews41 followers
January 25, 2025
Oh. My. Mothman. Y’all, I don’t even know where to begin with Flare by K.T. Maddan. This book has everything I didn’t know I needed: a cryptid boyfriend, hypno... um, features, primal vibes, and—wait for it—a forcible IUD removal scene (yes, you read that right). Strap in, because we’re going for a wild ride.

Let’s start with the main man—or, should I say, winged menace—himself. He’s got mind-reading powers, stalker energy (in the hot way, of course), and the ability to whisper sweet nothings while making you question all your life choices. He unalived her boyfriend and had me rooting for it because... well, boyfriend who? Move over, human mediocrity; Moth Daddy has entered the chat.

Now, let’s talk about the vibes. Paranormal investigation? Check. Kidnapping? Oh, absolutely. And that HFN (Happy for Now) ending? I’m clutching my pearls because I need MORE.

The spice? Y’all, this was next level. From primal play to—uh—hypnotic experiences that left me questioning my entire existence, this novella takes you places you weren’t sure you wanted to go... and then keeps you there. And the br33ding kink? Chef’s kiss.

“Little Ember” had me cackling because, honestly, what’s hotter than a cryptid nicknaming you like a campfire? And don’t get me started on the dubcon and, er, surgical scene. It’s chaotic, unhinged, and everything my dark little heart desires.

In conclusion, Flare is absolutely unhinged—and I loved every second of it. If you’re into cryptid chaos, paranormal smut, and a story that makes you side-eye yourself, RUN, don’t walk. Moth Daddy awaits.
61 reviews
December 27, 2024
Flare is an exhilarating dive into the world of cryptids, folklore, and forbidden romance that promises readers an unforgettable journey. The novella expertly balances steamy passion with an enchanting exploration of one of the most enduring urban legends: Mothman.

Elara is a refreshingly bold and determined protagonist. Her tenacity is admirable, and her unexpected encounter with Mothman is both thrilling and heartwarming. The romantic arc is the beating heart of the story, blending sensuality and emotional depth in a way that feels authentic and engrossing.

The novella's strength lies in its ability to create an atmosphere that's equal parts mysterious and romantic. The cryptid lore adds a layer of intrigue, giving the story a unique edge in the paranormal romance genre. The pacing is tight, making it easy to get lost in Elara and Mothman's whirlwind connection while still savoring the world-building.

For readers who enjoy spicy romance with a touch of the fantastical, Flare delivers on all fronts. It's a quick but satisfying read that will leave you craving more of this unconventional love story. Highly recommended for fans of supernatural romance with a twist!

Rating: 4.5/5






Profile Image for Paya Reads & Recommends.
21 reviews
July 2, 2025
Okay, I’ll be honest, I usually don’t read monster romance🖤. It’s not my usual go to. But Flare completely surprised me in the best way.

K.T. Maddan has this magnetic writing style that just pulls you right into the eerie, erotic chaos. The atmosphere? Like stepping into your darkest, most seductive nightmare.

I’ve always been drawn to the legend of MothMan and the way she retells this novella is so seductive, mesmerizing and keeps you wanting more.

Even if you are new to monster romance like I was, the way she sets the tone and builds tension makes it feel immersive and shockingly believable. I could practically feel the fog on my skin and hear the crunching of leaves beneath my feet. And now…I might be hooked to this genre.

🎬 Final Thoughts 💀

Flare completely surprised me in the best way. I didn’t expect to be into a monster romance, but the story gripped me from the start. K.T. Maddan knows how to walk that fine line between monster horror and heat. If monster romances are like this, I might be a monster girlie now. And I’ll absolutely be checking out more from K.T. Maddan.

I will be starting the next book in this series Crave, I can’t wait!
Profile Image for Stephanie Rhamstine.
153 reviews1 follower
December 16, 2024

When Elara sets out to capture proof of a local cryptid, she never expects the legend of Mothman to come alive—let alone sweep her off her feet in a whirlwind romance. Flare is a novella that delivers the perfect blend of steamy romance, intriguing lore, and just enough spice to keep you hooked.

From the very first page, I was captivated by the story of Elara and Mothman. The lore surrounding him added depth to the tale, making it more than just a paranormal romance. I loved how K.T. Madden stepped outside of traditional genre boundaries to craft something unique and engaging.

The pacing was perfect for a novella, and the chemistry between the leads was electric. It’s always exciting to see authors explore new genres and push creative boundaries. Flare is a quick, thrilling read that left me wanting more. If you’re a fan of cryptid romances or just looking for something out of the ordinary, I highly recommend this one!
Profile Image for Alexa.
141 reviews
April 7, 2025
I really did not enjoy this as much mainly because of the writing style and it really did feel like it was just continuously dragging on when it comes to description and it just felt like so much of it was just not needed or repetitive. honestly to me. it was also kind of boring to me and I had to force myself to read it even though it was a short book and also there was sometimes where there was like inaccuracies like somewhere in the book. he says that she will have his immortality and then at the end he's like oh she's mortal and she can have my immortality. and like we didn't even get to see like the kids at all at the end. And I'm just like the reasoning that he chose her is so stupid cuz I feel like he chose her at random and said that her strength is mainly from him looking at her memories I bet. So for me this just was not it. Luckily I didn't have high hopes for it anyway, it just sounded interesting to me.
Profile Image for rogue_reads_romance.
126 reviews7 followers
June 29, 2025
This is an erotic horror and is book one of the Cryptid Desires Novella series. This was a 5 star, 3 spice read for me! Tropes include: paranormal investigation gone wrong, mothman x human, insta-lust, he off her boyfriend, dub-con, mind numbing Os, telepathy, breeding k!nk, “good girl”, ske k!lls for him, soaking, he rewards her with Os, doomed HEA.
This was SUCH an amazing novella and was the spicy palate cleanser that my smutty soul needed. There wasn’t much gore, so please don’t let that deter you. It’s more “WTF…mmm…okay” that “eww”.

Elara (FMC) is at the end of her relationship road and literal road in the middle of nowhere. She and her “boyfriend” are hoping to capture some solid mothman footage so they can keep cashing in on their paranormal investigation social media presence. Things aren’t looking so good when she finds herself being st@alked by the creature she didn’t actually think existed. Now she’s not sure if she wasn’t to fork him or fight him.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 125 reviews

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